Alan R. (USA)
Just as the experience that comes from practicing Knowledge cannot be imagined nor recalled, but can only be felt in the moment of practice, the feeling that comes from receiving Maharaji’s message, whether live, in video or print, can only be experienced in the moment of receiving it. The re-awakening it brings me is always a surprise, re-igniting my passion for the world of joy within me. Inspire is the most valuable e-mail I get, and always worth opening.
Alan R.
November 28, 2005 in Mauritius, United States of America | Permalink
Kelly M, USA
Thank you so much for your efforts. I love to listen and learn from Maharaji. This gift is the most important to me, and I am so grateful.
Kelly M., USA
October 14, 2004 in United States of America | Permalink
Mary K, USA
To feel this feeling, to be reminded of the preciousness of existence, just to be connected to hearing about this possibility at every corner of my life, is such a wonderful gift. Thank you so much, Maharaji, for continuing to reach out to us again and again.
With deepest gratitude,
Mary K, USA
October 10, 2004 in United States of America | Permalink
Will C, California, USA
I usually find Maharaji’s talks gratifying and am very happy that I get a chance to see a couple of minutes of his presentations in the highlights of his work made available via the Inspire newsletter. One excerpt, Shield of Hope, was particularly, well, inspiring. As he talked about this breath, the flower and the experience, I once again heard his voice reaffirming what is important in this life, and what is beautiful. Thank you, for reminding me, yet one more time!
Will C.
CA, USA
October 9, 2004 in United States of America | Permalink
Robin B. - Boston, USA
A number of years ago in the foothills of southern Texas, I attended a workshop with Maharaji (his real name is Prem Rawat). We were a few days into it when I found my hand raised, offering to role-play with him during a session. We sat in two chairs on the make shift stage and went at it. My role was to be completely obtuse, insisting that I understood what Knowledge was. He was cool, trying to get me to understand the process of learning and growing. I would hear none of it. It was amusing, but eventually it was clear he wanted to wrap it up so he asked me, still in role, “What can I do to help you understand?” “Let me sit with you at dinner tonight,” popped out of my mouth. I blushed at myself, but later when the group went into San Antonio for Mexican food, he invited me over and proceeded to be a completely gracious host. To me, this was quintessential Prem Rawat, an innovative teacher, an inspirational life-guide, and someone who knows how to make a wallflower feel like a princess.
—Robin B.
Boston, MA, USA
January 2, 2004 in United States of America | Permalink
John M. - Miami Beach, FL, USA
Reflecting on the years I have worked closely with Maharaji, my overriding feeling is that he’s undoubtedly the most special person I’ve ever worked with. He brings a uniqueness and beauty to doing things. A lot of what he asks of me is not overly formulated and requires my own initiative and creativity, as well as great precision. Often with great kindness, he thanks me for doing something for him, and I just feel like saying with utmost sincerity, “Well, thank you.”
It’s beautiful to watch how sensitive and appreciative he is to each one. He’s a very hands on person and will often be right there doing the task along side of you. He’s not like a boss. He is sensitive to different cultures and to each individual. I’ve seen him be very directive at times and very receptive and sensitive at others. I’ve seen him get frustrated by things that would make me furious. He’s not judgmental of people’s capabilities. When a person doesn’t work out at a given task, if the sincerity is there, he finds another task that’s more suitable. I think he has more patience than anyone I know.
— John M.
Miami Beach, FL, USA
December 29, 2003 in United States of America | Permalink
Lauren Evers - Burbank, CA, US
As the CEO of Intellikey Labs, a DVD testing service based in Burbank, California, Lauren Evers is at the center of a firm experiencing hipergrowth. In 1996 Lauren and her future husband, Darrell, both worked in Time-Warner’s quality assurance program, creating quality standards for computer and DVD applications. Time-Warner had doubts about the future of its testing business and closed the quality assurance department. Darrell and Lauren thought otherwise and set up a testing service. They were able to turn their contacts with Sony, Paramount, Warner Bros., Disney, and Universal into permanent customers. Demand for DVD players and the disc-testing methodologies they employ have been recession proof, a boon to Intellikey, which tests thousands of master discs every month. Virtually no DVD reaches a consumer’s hands in the United States without its check disc having been vetted by Intellikey. Evers believes receiving self-knowledge has afforded a different kind of quality assurance—more like quality of life. In 2001 her husband, the love of her life as well as her business partner, died. Having received self-knowledge in 1997, she reckons, allowed her to cope and find strength.
When I first met Darrell, we both worked for Time-Warner. I knew there was something different about him. One day he returned from Miami beaming about an experience he had listening to Maharaji. I asked him to explain it to me, and that’s when he told me about self-knowledge and how much Maharaji had helped him in this pursuit. I remember thinking: “Darrell must be weak. Why does he need to depend on this person for guidance?” I was puzzled, but also curious. A month later, Darrell invited me to hear Maharaji speak in California. That evening, I became fascinated. I started listening to tapes of Maharaji’s addresses several times a week and discovered he was addressing some of the most profound questions I ever had. I began having new insights into my life, seeing it as a gift that I had never fully appreciated. I also realized that I had, in reality, expected Darrell, now my husband, to be the source of my entire happiness when, in fact, happiness was first to be found within myself.
When Darrell was diagnosed and soon died of cancer, I was devastated; but these last years have been a rich time as so much good has taken place. Through my practice of self-knowledge, I was able to see what happened as a gift and to remain at peace. I remember how differently I once saw things. At Time-Warner and earlier at Commodore Computer, I was a workaholic and judged myself on the approval of colleagues and superiors. I have come to realize that life isn’t about your success or failure in business, and yet success keeps manifesting for me.
Having self-knowledge has helped me discern what’s really important for me and how to work for it. For that, I am grateful.
December 12, 2003 in A - Featured Posts, United States of America | Permalink
Neil Evans, Belleveue, WA, USA
Self-knowledge has given me a more objective point of view about the people and events in my life, observes Neil Evans, executive director of the National Workforce Centerfor Emerging Technologies, an affiliation of Bellevue Community College, Bellevue, WA. Prior to his work in technology education, Evans was the CIO (1983 to 1994) of Microsoft, wbere be was recognized for tbree years by CIO magazine as one of the nation’s leading 100 IT officers. He believes it has made a difference in his career. I am constantly asked to take a leadersbip role because others can sense my objectivity and clarity, he says.
In 1974, when I was 26, I had been investigating a variety of different ways of learning more about myself. I had practiced martial arts for several years. This certainly helped, but I wanted to apply this understanding to all aspects of my life. Maharaji’s self-knowledge has enabled me to have this understanding. Like martial arts, it takes constant practice and the results are cumulative.
The biggest obstacles that I have had to overcome are ones that I have created. As much as I pursue my dreams wholeheartedly, there is always a voice within that tells me to stop, to go slower, or practice tomorrow. I try not to listen to that voice. Maharaji provides guidance and leadership on this path, reminding me of the value of my life and the importance of consistent practice of the techniques of self-knowledge.
December 12, 2003 in A - Featured Posts, United States of America | Permalink
Dalit F. - Thousand Oaks, CA, USA
I received Knowledge twenty-two years ago. Back then I would talk about it much more than I do now, not because there is less to it, but because I have learned to appreciate and savor it as it is, just mine.
I know some people spend their youth, or even their entire lives searching—I did not. I kind of stumbled upon it as one does with life’s opportunities. And I liked what I heard, but more than this—I liked what I felt. Here was something that I was entrusted with to check and validate, all by myself. This was something for me, and even if I did wish to show how cool it was—there was nothing out there to bear witness, but me, to having a very happy and satisfied heart. It has become over the years such a part of my life that I do sometimes forget how profound it is. This is the stuff that great poems are made of, that words like “yearning,” “longing,” and “bliss” are meant for. And it’s not in my behavior; you wouldn’t see anything glowing above my messy hairdo—I’m far too busy doing mom and kids and other very mundane things. But I also find time to be with my heart. And it does make a difference—for me. This sweet, simple, loving feeling that I feel inside of me—words like “grateful” come to mind.
And Maharaji—he has been the most absolutely amazing friend. Refreshing the enthusiasm, helping me keep such a delicate commitment in this blizzard of life. I simply feel very, very fortunate.
— Dalit F.
Thousand Oaks, CA, USA
December 11, 2003 in United States of America | Permalink
Erica A. - Kingston, NY, USA
Almost thirty years ago, Maharaji showed me a simple, continuously available means of feeling joy within myself. Since then, he has consistently and lovingly reminded me that joy exists within me and has inspired me to take advantage of the opportunity to feel it.
There is another important reason that I am Maharaji’s student—one more subtle, yet equally powerful. Beyond the logic (I want to learn; he wants to teach; I trust him to do so), there is the relationship that has grown between us over the years. When someone really helps you, in any way, the natural impulse is to feel grateful. I feel enormously grateful to Maharaji; gratitude freely offered is a delight to both giver and receiver. Also, when two people relate as student and teacher, especially over a long period of time, a deep affection and trust tends to develop in each for the other. My relationship of affection and trust with Maharaji has become an intrinsic and lovely part of the process of Knowledge.
Because I cherish the gift he showed me and appreciate his support in taking advantage of it, I continue to accept his offer to be my teacher. From my point of view, my decision to be his student has paid tremendous dividends: I’ve found his gift, his help, and his presence in my life inexpressibly valuable.
— Erica A.
Kingston, NY, USA
December 11, 2003 in United States of America | Permalink
Mary W. - Los Angeles, CA, USA
For a number of years, I worked as a tutor for the Rawat children, particularly in the area of math. One day, I was working with the youngest son on formulas. The boy was a picture of someone whose politeness was at war with a strong desire to be almost anywhere else. I had seen this as a challenge and had brought out my best tricks to bring the relationship of rate, time, and distance alive. I thought it was just beginning to work when Maharaji came into the room to greet his son and asked what he was working on. The boy’s grimace as he pointed to “r x t = d” effectively shattered my illusions of success, but I was totally unprepared for the father’s response: “Well, that isn’t true.” What followed was a lively and humorous presentation of how the relationship of time and distance changed in space. One glance at my young student’s dancing eyes let me know that I was witnessing an uncommon art—one bored young boy felt the glee of his father’s support and the fascination with a story that was rich with questioning long held precepts and with venturing into the unknown. It seemed that he might even be following the lesson in Einstein’s physics better than I, though I am sure I was equally interested. Five minutes later, the dreaded moment arrived when I would have to go back to the now disgraced formula that still needed to be dutifully applied to the next six exercises. But before I could decide an approach to take, I noticed that one previously reluctant youngster was effortlessly plowing through his homework. He was the master of his rearranged world, resistance on recess. What a distance had been traveled in that ten minutes!
— Mary W.
Los Angeles, CA, USA
December 7, 2003 in United States of America | Permalink
Edd H. - Agoura Hills, USA
I believe there are countless benefits from having access to this inner place. Most important, I feel happy inside. It is my very special secret. I have access to a place within me that is happy, joyful, content. It also helps free me from the limitations and constraints of my thinking. As a physician, I have great respect for the mind and its capacity to solve problems, understand issues, and delve into the secrets of the universe, understand the human body. Yet I also see how much misery and unhappiness it can cause. Maharaji's Knowledge allows me to spend time somewhere else within me. I always have access to my thinking, and, of course, like everyone else I often go traveling in the unusual directions it chooses to take me. Knowledge gives me the possibility of getting a little distance from it and experiencing a different, much more satisfying place within me.
— Edd H.
Agoura Hills, CA, USA
November 17, 2003 in United States of America | Permalink
Marcus L. Munger - US
A nuclear physicist with degrees from Cal State at North Ridge and the University of Colorado, Marcus L. Munger, Pb.D., became interested in self-knowledge through his.fascination with the forces of nature. For over two decades, be has worked on the design and development of surveillance satellites, initialy for IBM Federal Systems Division and currently, as senior scientist, Research and Development Project Lead for Lockheed Martin. Having worked on the early development of the Strategic Defense Initiative during the ‘80s, he holds two patents for algorithms that allow satellites to track objects in ballistic motion. Before receiving self-knowledge, Munger tbought the pursuit of science in and of itself might enable bim to understand his own nature. He’s discovered that there’s more to it than that.
Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated by how nature works. When I went to University, this curiosity led me to study nuclear physics. I hoped that through these studies I would also come to understand myself. After a few years, I realized that studying nuclear physics, although interesting and challenging, was not yielding what I was looking for.
I first became interested in self-knowledge in 1972 when I read an article about it in a Denver newspaper. This lead me to attend a Maharaji lecture in Red Rock later that year. What I heard made sense to me. Maharaji spoke of a superior power within each of us that could neither be created nor destroyed. This, of course, is one of the tenets of the principle of the conservation of energy. The pursuit of self-knowledge became for me the means to realize and experience what was happening within me moment by moment. Thinking a certain way is not as important to me as being able to experience contentment. Analysis and syn-thesis are still necessary in dealing with problems both at home and on the job, but I don’t have to rely on them for my own satisfaction.
Self-knowledge has increased my understanding of my inner self. It connects me to something that is perma-nent, affording a wider perspective to see the beauty around me. The experience has taught me that there is a way to have satisfaction even when I can’t find it in the world outside. People notice that I tend to remain calm and am not upset by changing circumstances. I have talked several times with one of the managers I work with about life and where contentment lies. The other day, he said to another manager who was feeling upset: “Talk to Marcus. You will understand things from a different perspective and begin to feel better.” After this person had talked to me, she became aware that there was something more important to understand.
I find that this fast-paced life can be confusing, and it is wonderful to have someone to guide me who knows how to experience joy. In the 30 years I have known about self-knowledge, he has reminded me again and again to consider what is most important to me. I now know that it is possible to feel satisfaction and contentment in this life. It is worth the search.
August 24, 2003 in A - Featured Posts, United States of America | Permalink
Jon K - Bethesda, MD, USA
Shortly after completing my MBA a number of years ago, I was introduced to Knowledge, and it was certainly very different from anything I had learned in school. The introduction happened quite by chance, and the subject was neither familiar nor was it anything I had been seeking. But while it may have sounded somewhat foreign, it felt simple; it felt comfortable, and it felt true.
Not long after being shown the techniques of Knowledge, I met Maharaji, who was then just fourteen years old, and I was profoundly impressed by his wisdom, his intelligence, and his perspective. Since that time, I have had the honor—and the distinct pleasure—of a continuing association with Maharaji and his work, and I have become even more impressed with his unique perspective and the remarkable kindness, wisdom, clarity, intelligence, and humor that he brings to his work. He is an extraordinary man.
The Knowledge that Maharaji has shown me and the guidance that he continues to offer me are absolutely fundamental to my existence. Every day, I have choices and choices and choices about what to do, where to go, what to eat, and what plans to make. And I also have a choice about being truly fulfilled—a genuine fulfillment that reaches to the very core of my existence. Maharaji has given me that choice, and I am profoundly grateful.
— Jon K.
Bethesda, MD, USA
June 27, 2003 in United States of America | Permalink
